FEATURED ARTICLES ABOUT SAFETY TRAINING - PAGE 3

Even officials from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration seemed surprised by the voluntary cooperation to meet its guidelines through a new program based in Shorewood. A ceremonial ribbon was cut last week for the Three Rivers Safety Council Training Center, which opened its doors officially to independent contractors hired to work at industrial plants in Will, Grundy and Kankakee Counties. The center, touted as the first of its kind in Illinois and perhaps the Midwest, coordinates safety efforts of contractors and labor interests with the industries they serve through the Three Rivers Manufacturers' Association.

The car of an Aurora man, who police said was driving drunk Monday, was struck by two Metra trains in Hinsdale after passersby pulled him to safety. Commuters on Metra's Burlington Northern Santa Fe line to Aurora experienced delays of as long as 21/2 hours Monday night, and four outbound trains from Union Station to Aurora were canceled, Metra spokeswoman Judy Pardonnet said. The accident occurred about 5:30 p.m. at the Washington Street crossing, where the car was struck and burst into flames.

The Aurora fire marshal has agreed to recommend that the City Council repeal a controversial fire code provision opposed by home day-care operators. Those operators, in return, have agreed to take part in mandatory Fire Department workshops on fire safety and first aid, Fire Marshal Kent Becker said this week. The workshops, which would be added to the 15 hours of annual training required by the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services, would accomplish the goal of increasing safety, which was the motive for the fire code provision, Becker said.

Elgin Community College officials say a new center in Burlington will feature training for first responders, sustainability programs and a more than 40,000-square-foot truck driving training pad. The Public Safety and Sustainability Center is on track to break ground next spring and open with the fall 2014 semester on a 118-acre site off Plank Road in Burlington, said Sharon Konny, vice president of business and finance. A tax increase approved by voters in 2009 is making the project a reality.

Mayor Richard Daley's administration is making plans to limit the number of handguns allowed in Chicago homes as it grapples with a U.S. Supreme Court opinion gutting the city's long-standing gun ban. Each qualified gun owner in a home could have only one handgun under a new ordinance being drawn up that could be heard by the City Council Police and Fire Committee as soon as Thursday, officials said. The ordinance would require handgun owners to register their weapons with the Police Department and keep them secured inside the home.

By Jennifer Chaussee SACRAMENTO Calif. (Reuters) - State and local officials in California, worried that trains carrying crude oil from Canada and North Dakota could cause explosions or environmental damage in their state, asked lawmakers on Thursday to regulate the shipments, which are becoming more frequent. Firefighters and others urged action on bills in the California legislature to impose safety regulations on trains carrying crude oil to refineries in the state, a year after a disastrous oil train derailment in Canada that killed 47 people and spilled 1.6 million gallons of crude.

The best that can be said about the level of safety on the CTA rail system is that riders are not putting their lives in jeopardy. That's far from high praise, but it's the basic conclusion of an on-site safety review of the CTA rail system commissioned by the Regional Transportation Authority, which has oversight authority over the transit agency. In essence, CTA trains are safe enough to ride, but many upgrades are necessary and should not be postponed, the RTA concluded in evaluating 14 key areas.

Catherine Sedun remembers binge drinking among students when she attended college about a decade ago. Despite an influx of programs to combat the problem in recent years, she says it remains a top concern on many campuses. "These students work so hard to get into these universities, and once they get here, a lot of them spiral out of control with their freedom," she said. "It's time to party. " In an attempt to save students from themselves, Sedun, a high school teacher and a graduate student at Northwestern University, headed the Red Watch Band program at the Evanston campus last year.

The Illinois Department of Transportation's Cycle Rider Safety Training Program has won an award of merit from the National Motorcycle Safety Foundation of Costa Mesa, Calif. The Motorcycle Safety Foundation awards have been given annually since 1978.